Naperville Central baseball arrives in enemy territory for the second-to-last baseball conference matchup of the spring after picking up a series win over DeKalb. Metea Valley plays enters the game still searching for its first DVC win of the season. This highlight is sponsored by BMO.
Redhawk bats come alive in the first inning
The Redhawks swing away early with Troy Kashul smacking a liner into right field for a single.
Two on for the Hawks and Michael Page gets a favorable swing that keeps the ball in play, which allows Kashul to soar across home plate, and it’s 1-0 Redhawks.
3-0 Hawks with Daniel Nussbaum up to bat, and he rips a bullet to right field out of everyone’s range. That gives Roan Orlanes and Grant Umbright the go-ahead to score to make it 5-0 in favor of Naperville Central after one inning.
Pitcher Chase Reeder feeds off that early offense by throwing a feisty strike three to retire the side.
Central looks for more hits in the second inning, but Tyler Gluting makes a run for it and takes a dive to make the catch for the out.
The defense continues to stand tall with Matt Reilly throwing down to Armaan Shah at second base to knab the runner and keep the bases empty.
The Mustangs still trail 5-0 in the fifth inning, but Ethan Singer hopes this base hit will get a spark going for the home team.
Matt Reilly gives Metea a late swing
Two on with Matt Reilly up to bat, who rips a laser to left for a hit. Singer and Shah turn on the jets and hustle home to score to get Metea on the board, trailing 5-2.
Gluting continues the fifth inning surge with a hit that puts the fielder on skates. Reilly makes it home safely, it’s now a 5-3 ballgame after five innings.
Come the sixth inning, Casey Cooperkawa adds some insurance with a chopper to bring home Eli Jarrell and Nussbaum and open up a more comfortable 7-3 lead for the Redhawks.
Naperville Central baseball holds on for a win
Metea adds a run on an Armaan Shah double followed by a Matt Reilly RBI groundout in the sixth. Then Michael Willhite scores following a pair of walks and a wild pitch . The Mustangs trail 7-5 with runners on first and third with two outs after a single from Ethan Singer. Shah represents the go ahead run for the Mustangs.
Ryan Gervase steps into relief and he gets the clutch punchout to end the ballgame. Naperville Central holds on to pick up a 7-5 win over Metea Valley to begin the three-game series.
For more prep sports highlights, visit the Naperville Sports Weekly page.
